Come Here To Me!

LIFE Magazine, a leading U.S magazine of the day, ran an interesting feature on Dublin in their 24 July 1939 edition. The magazine frequently gave coverage to events on the island of Ireland, and the article in this particular edition was titled ‘Ireland: A new flag brings hope to an old and pious land.’

The magazine heaped praise on Eamon de Valera, noting that the ‘long-lipped Spanish-Irishman’ had run the country single-handed since 1932, and noting that ‘he has dealt drastically with the ex-overlords of England.’

Written at a time of conflict in Europe, the magazine felt compelled to note that ‘Ireland is very hospitable to Nazis. Their leader in Ireland is Doctor Adolph Mahr, president of the Éire National Museum whose staff supplies him with complete air views of Ireland’. It goes on to note that newsreels of Hitler were warmly greeted in Dublin picture houses.

Pro-IRA graffiti on Kilmainham Jail (LIFE Magazine, 24 July 1939)

the magazine included this fantastic image of an ‘IRA speaker’ addressing a crowd in Dublin, and noted that the IRA’s bombing campaign in mainland Britain enjoyed a degree of public support from the Irish public.

IRA speaker in Dublin (LIFE Magazine 24 July 1939)

Trinity College is noted to be the cultural heart of the city, but we are told it is still an almost exclusively Protestant institution.

Trinity College Dublin (LIFE Magazine, 24 July 1939)

The article includes a wide variety of images from across the island of Ireland, in terms of Dublin images I think this one is striking, taking during a farmers march in the capital.

Farmers protest in Dublin (LIFE Magazine, 24 July 1939)